Ink package and supply system for duplicating machines



F. K. LAKE May 2, 1967 INK PACKAGE AND SUPPLY SYSTEM FOR DUPLICATING MACHINES 3 Sheets-Sheet l Filed April 20, 1966 HNI m m m FRANC/s K. LAKE BY ATTORNEY.

3,316,839 INK PACKAGE AND SUPPLY SYSTEM FOR DUPLICATING MACHINES 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 11 3LP f7 HWJHREEEILHUTIMILTEDTH F. K. LAKE May 2, 1967 Filed April 20, 1966 llv INVENTOR. FRANC/sh. LAKE BM AZ @fr A T TO RNE Y.

F. K. LAKE May 2, 1967 INK PACKAGE AND SUPPLY SYSTEM FOR DUPLICATING MACHINES 3 `Sheets-Sheet 3 Filed April 20, 1966 FIG-I6 INVENTOR. FRANCIS K. LAKE ATTORNEY United States Patent Clice `3,316,839 Patented May 2, 1967 3,316,339 INK PACKAGE AND SUPPLY SYSTEM FOR DUPLICATING MACHINES Francis K. Lake, Euclid, Ohio, assigner to Addressograph- Multigraph Corporation, Cleveland, hio, a corpora tion of Delaware Filed Apr. 20, 1966, Ser. No. 549,752 4 Claims. (Cl. 10i- 364) ABSTRACT F THE DISCLOSURE This invention is directed principally to a package assembly and to a supply system wherein the pastry type of ink which will be used in a duplicating machine, and is suiciently viscous that it will not pour of its own volition Within any short interval of time, is packaged in a container designed to completely overlay the doctor blade and hence protect it completely from being inked, and to provide a tear strip for opening the package, which tear strip is placed and proportioned to present a mouth opening which is closed by the periphery of the fountain roller and therefore completely protects the ink supply against air drying at the same time it permits White glove installation of the ink supply and removal of that ink supply after a working period has ended, or to change ink colors. Then, the only cleaning necessary is done almost automatically by placing an absorbent paper in the place of the master and running a solvent over the surface of the rollers until the surface ink is carried to the paper and removed from the machine.

The eld of art to which this invention pertains is the ink supply of duplicating machines such as the machine known by the trademark Multilith. Generally, these machines are offset printing machines employing a rotating cylindrical master. The master is selectively faced with ink and moisture on the basis of the lithographie principle, and the ink is offset in reverse image form on tothe receptive surface of a blanket on a blanket cylinder. The sheets to be printed receive the image in direct reading form from the blanket.

In order to supply ink and moisture in proper proportion as required, a series of rollers is provided for conveying the moistue from a reservoir to the master, and another series of rollers is provided for conveying the ink from an ink fountain roller to a form roller which rolls against the face of the master. By transferring this ink from roller to roller, a uniform coating of ink in very thin surface layer is finally presented to the master.

It has been the practice to place a doctor blade substantially against the surface of the fountain roller and to provide adjustment of that doctor blade in order that an exceedingly small gap may exist between the blade and the fountain roller. A thick pasty ink is taken from a can or a tube, and injected into the trough which this blade forms with respect to the surface of the fountain roller.

The ink in the trough is subject to gradual hardening because the ink must be of a drying nature in order to dry on the surface of paper being printed. This, plus the fact that color changes require removal of the ink, necessitates a time-consuming and distasteful cleanup job. Furthermore, the use of such duplicating machine by office personnel is sometimes repulsive because this ink has a propensity for finding its way to the clothing of the worker. In summation, the use of bulk ink in a duplicating machine is a distasteful and time-consuming operation.

It is customary practice in the ink industry today to package ink in containers such as cans, tubes and cartridges. While these forms of packaging ink have been accepted more or less as standard, there are certain shortcomings associated with these containers particularly as related to transferring the ink from the container to an ink fountain of a duplicating or printing machine. Obviously, removal of the ink from cans, tubes and cartridges requires handling of the container and at least some manual operation such as, removing the ink from the can with an ink knife, squeezing the ink from the tube or forcing the ink out of the cartridge with a so-called ink gun, similar in nature to the conventional caulking implement. It will be appreciated, While these operations are not too diicult to perform, they are objectionable, particularly among female operators of duplicating machines, from the standpoint of soiled fingers and clothing resulting from the handling of the ink containers.

Another undesirable feature associated with present day ink packaging methods as related to printing and duplicating machines, is that the ink from the container is placed directly into the ink fountain of the machine. Consequently, the ink in the fountain is exposed to dirt, dust, lint, Skinning, etc., thus creating additional problems in attempting to obtain high quality duplicating copies. Also, of course, the inherent tackiness of duplicating ink causes it to adhere to the walls of the ink fountain, ink metering blade and other components of the fountain, resulting in a messy and time-consuming clean-up operation.

It is an object of the present invention to provide an ink package for use with a duplicating machine, which does not require transfer of the loose ink from the packlage to the ink fountain of the machine and, therefore, results in a package that is clean to handle.

Another object of the invention is to provide an ink package which can be placed as a unit directly into the ink fountain of a duplicating machine, thereby protecting the various parts of the fountain from becoming contaminated with ink.

Another object of the invention is to provide an ink package which protects the ink from Skinning, exposure to dirt, dust and lint during machine operation Another object of the invention is to provide an ink package which is clean to handle, convenient to use and economical to manufacture.

Still another object of the invention is to provide an ink package that can easily be placed into and removed from an ink fountain of a duplicating machine, which protects the fountain from being contaminated with ink thereby substantially reducing the time required to clean the `machine and, which at the same time, protects the operator against getting fingers and clothing soiled during the operation of charging the fountain with ink.

A further object of the invention is the provision of an ink package in accordance with any one or more of the foregoing objects, which can be manufactured and filled in a simple direct and inexpensive manner.

A feature of the present invention is the provision of an ink package design capable of construction primarily by assembly of continuous strips using continuous longitudinal heat seals.

Another feature of the invention is the provision of an hermetically sealed ink package in which the ink is securely prote-cted against deteriorating influences for long storage periods, ibut which embodies a convenient opening device in the nature of a tear strip which makes the contents instantly available for use when desired.

These and other objects, features, and advantages of the invention will become more apparent'from the following description and drawings wherein:

FIG. l is a plan View of an ink package;

FlG. 2 is a transverse section on line 2-2 of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a transverse section showing the package in an intermediate stage of manufacture;

FIG. 4 is a transverse section taken at the location of line 4 4 of FIG. 1, greatly enlarged, but showing the package while still attened after its formation is largely completed, and before it is filled with ink or sealed;

FIG. is a detail section substantially on line 5 5 of FIG. 1, -but with both flaps folded back;

FIG. 6 is a plan view of an alternate form of ink package according to the invention;

FIG. 7 is a transverse section on line 7-7 of FIG. 6;

FIG. 8 is a plan view of still another alternate form of ink package according to the invention;

FIG. 9 is a transverse section on line 9-9 of FIG. 8;

FIG. 10 is a transverse section showing the package of FIG. 8 in an intermediate stage of manufacture;

FIG. 1l is a transverse se-ction taken at the location of line 11-11 of FIG. 8, greatly enlarged, but showing the package while still flattened after its formation is largely completed, and before it is filled with ink or sealed;

FIG. 12 is a partial plan view, greatly enlarged, showing the tear strip construction in detail;

FIG. 13 is a diagrammatic representation, substantially in full scale, of a section view through an ink fountain roller and the package of FIG. 2, in operative relationship, with a squeezing device for feeding the ink;

FIG. 14 is a similar full scale representation of the package of FIG. 7;

FIG. 15 is a similar full scale representation of the package of FIG. 9;

FIG. 16 is a section similar to that shown in FIG. 9, with the folds in spaced relationship prior to sealing, and showing the fold path which makes possible coating of the basic sheet on one side only for heat sealing; and

FIG. 17 is a diagrammatic full sized section similar to that of FIG. 13 showing the FIG. 16 type of package in operative relationship with an ink fountain roller.

One lform of package according to the present invention is indicated generally at 1t) in FIG. l, and is preferably made of transparent plastic material comprising a bottom 12, top 14, side 16 and tear strip 13 as shown in FIGS. 2, 3 and 4 which, when assembled, form a flexible envelope. This construction provides iirst and second sheet walls defining opposite sides of an elongate, relatively flexible envelope with a bridging wall between the sides on one longitudinal border, although the other longitudinal border has the walls directly joined one to the other. Although any of several different materials may be used in the construction of the package, it is preferably fabricated from transparent plastic material which lends itself to heat sealing operations. In this connection, excellent results have been achieved with a thin Mylar film. Mylar is the trademark of a proprietary product known chemically as polyethylene terephthalate. However, since Mylar film is not compatible with heat sealing, it is necessary to coat at least that surface of the film to be heat sealed with a thermo sealing composition. Here again there are several different thermo sealing compositions that could be used and, in practice it is preferred to utilize Mylar iilm coated with polyethylene. Actually the ability to render one surface only of the material heat scalable proves to have certain advantages as will presently appear.

VThe irst step in the assembly of the package is best shown in FIG. 3. As shown therein, bottom 12, having a thermo sealing coated surface 12C, is heat sealed to side 16, which is coated so as to be heat sealable on both surfaces. This seal is indicated at 26. Heat seal 26 is placed inwardly from one edge of bottom 12 and along one margin of side 16. The seal 26 runs the full length of the package. Top 14 is positioned intermediate bottom 12 and side 16 and has a coated surface 14C heat sealed at 28 along the entire length of the margin of side 16 opposite the seal 26. Heat seal 23 is also spaced inwardly from one edge of top 14, in a mannersimilar to seal 26 in relation to one edge of bottom 12. Tear strip 18 need only be coated on the surface contacting side 16, and it is heat sealed along its entire length to side 16 at a position slightly to one side of the center of side 16. Taking the tear strip `from the bridging side wall 16 divides the wall 16 along the dividing line. Thus the bridging wall is allotted into two parts, one part remaining associated with the first sheet side wall 12, and the other with the second sheet side wall 14. Both of these resultant parts of the -bridging wall 16 are extendable after division to a terminal edge `a distance less than the terminal edge of the first sheet Wall 12. Therefore, it is not possible for both sides of the package to feed into the space where only the longer side is intended to reside. It will be appreciated, the heat seals and thickness of the members shown in FIG. 3 have been greatly en-f larged for clarity, and in actual practice the overlapping portions of members 12, 14 and 16 contact one another with only innitesirnal spacing therebetween.

On completion of the heat sealing operations described above, the bottom 12 and top 14 are brought together in the direction of arrows A in FIG. 3. In this way, the coated surfaces 12C and 14e are in face-to-face relation and the margins of bottom 12 and top 14 are heat sealed along their entire lengths as shown at 30 in FIGS. l, 2 and 4. The next operation in the fabrication of the package is to seal one of the ends indicated at 32. At this point it will be observed that the bottom 12 and top 14 provide extending aps 20 and 22 respectively along the top edge of the package. In use, these flaps serve to guide the ink iiow from the package and protect the parts of the ink fountain other than the fountain roller from ink contamination but they must also remain dellectable so as to permit access for opening the package prior to inserting it into the fountain as will be explained hereinafter. Accordingly, it is essential that the iiaps not be sealed to each other or to the side 16 in the area above the seals 26 and 28 are shown in FIG. 4, at the time the ends of the package are sealed as shown at 32.

To effect the sealing 32 at one end of the package, flaps 2t) and 22 are folded over as shown in FIG. 5, so the uncoated surfaces of the lia-ps are facing the uncoated surfaces of bottom 12 and top 14. With the flaps in this position, the entire end of the package is heat sealed as indicated at 32 in FIG. I, with no danger of sealing the aps together or to the Vside 16. With one end sealed, the package is charged with ink and then the other end of the package is sealed in the same manner as described hereinabove. In order that the package may have a substantially flat, relatively uniform cross section, it is not entirely filled with ink. A charge of ink which is a predetermined fraction (possibly 1/2) of the calculated package capacity is introduced, and the air is expelled priorV to the making of the second end seal. Thus when the ink is redistributed uniformly throughout the package length, a relatively thin package is provided having a nearly uniform thickness throughout its length.

To permit easy removal of the tear strip 18 at the time the package is opened for placement into an ink fountain of a duplicating machine, a slit or lance 34 is provided at eaoh end of the package in the area of the heat seals 32. Since these lances are alike, only one will be described. The lance is provided in the .package lby turning back extensions 2@ and 22, as shown in FIG. 5, and outting through the bottom 12, side 16, tear strip 18 and top 14, all of which are now in effect one layer of material as a result of the heat sealing operation of the end of the package as indicated at 32. The lance need only be long enough to cut slightly beyond the Width of the tear strip 18 and, in this embodiment of the invention, is prefer` ably positioned inwardly from the end of the package and parallel therewith as shown in FIG. 1. The lance at one end of the package acts as a starting point to open the side 16 of the package by removing the tear strip 18 and the portion of side 16 to which it is sealed. At the other end of the package the lance serves as a stop to prevent the tear strip from being pulled beyond the lance and thereby cause opening of the end of the package in the area of the seal 32.

While the above description of the lance 34 covers one embodiment in which the lance is positioned parallel to the end of the package, it will be appreciated that the lance may also be provided in other positions within the same general area of the package. In this regard, the lance may be cut inwardly from the end of the package as indicated at 54 in FIG. 6, or at an angular position either inwardly from the end of the package or downwardly through the side 16 in a manner similar to the lance 34 shown in FIG. 1. However, the preferred lance for this particular package construction, as mentioned above, is provided in a parallel relation to the end of the .package to lprevent the tear strip f8 from opening the seals 32 and thereby creating a situation in which ink might possibly leak from the ends of the package during use.

To `open the package, one or both of the aps 2t) and are turned `back to provide access to the lance 34 and tear strip :18, and the side 16 of the package is opened by removing the tear strip by pulling it outwardly and toward the lance at the other end of the package. Subsequently, the opened .package is placed into the ink fountain of a duplicating machine with the flaps at the open side extending toward the fountain roller. In this position the lla-ps form between them an elongate dispensing orifice or slit extending substantially the length of the package through which ink may be extruded for use, brut t-he lower Hap 20 also engages the lower portion of the ink fountain and preferably projects lbeyond its extremity to thereby protect it from coming into contact with the ink, thus considerably reducing the cleanaup operation of the ink fountain. As the ink is fed from the package under pressure, the flaps act as guides to direct the flow of the ink directly to the ink fountain roller.

The alternate package configuration shown in FIGS. 6 and 7 is in many ways similar to the package described above and, in use, functions i'n the same manner. The primary difference between the two arrangements is that this alternate package, with the exception of the tear strip, is fabricated from a single piece of material.

This alternate form of package is indicated generally at 40 in FIG. 6, and includes a single sheet of Mylar film 42 having a thermo sealing polyethylene coating 42e on one surface only. Prior to forming the package, a tear strip 44 is heat sealed to the inside surface of the sheet in the position shown in FIG. 7. With the tear strip in place, the package is formed and the bottom edges are sealed together along their entire lengths as shown at 46. It will `be appreciated, this one piece construction of the package, while employing somewhat more material, eliminates the need for Iheat seals such as 2-6 and 2S required in connection with the attachment of side 16 of the first described package.

The package 40 provides a double thickness top 48 having an extending flap 58 and a double thickness bottom 50 having an extending flap 56. Since the package is not sealed as at 26 and 28 as mentioned above, the |bottom and top sections are free to drop downwardly from the position shown in FIG. 7, in which position the end seals indicated at 52 can be effectively placed provided the sealing members do not extend below the longitudinal seal area 46. On the other hand, the flaps may be left in the position of FIG. 7 during the end sealing operation if desired, since the heat sealing coating does not appear on the flap surfaces which are adjacent each other or turned towards the inner thickness of the top and bottom 48 and 50.

A lance 54 is provided at each end of the package for -the purpose of removing the tear strip 44 and opening the package. However, while the lances 54 are shown as being cut inwardly from the ends of the package, it is to be understood that they may be provided in various other Ways, as disclosed in connection with the package of FIG. 1.

In use, the package 40 performs in the same manner as the package of the preferred embodiment, including the feature of utilizing the aps 56 and 58 to protect the parts of the ink fountain from contact with ink.

The alternate form of ink package illustrated in FIGS. 8-11 will now be described. As shown in FIG. l0, the package comprises a top sheet 60 and a bottom sheet 62 of Mylar film. Sheet 60 is provided with a thermo sealing polyethylene coating on both surfaces and sheet 62 is provided with a polyethylene coating on one vsurface 62e only. A tear strip 64 is heat sealed to top sheet 60 at a position spaced inwardly from one edge thereof shown in FIG. l0, and one marginal edge of sheet 6i) is heat sealed at 66 to surface 62C at a position spaced inwardly from one edge of the bottom sheet 62 as shown in FIG. 10.

On completion of the above described sealing operations, sheets 60 and 62 are brought together in the direction of arrows B in FIG. l0, and the margins of top 60` and bottom 62 are heat sealed along their entire lengths as shown at 68 in FIGS. -8, 9 and l1. At this stage of fabrication the package appears as shown in FIG. ll, with tear strip 64 sealed to the inside surface of top sheet 60, bottom sheet 62 sealed lat `66 to top sheet 60 and the margins of sheets 6i) and 62 sealed together as shown at 68. It will be observed from the drawings, this method of fabricating the package provides only a single flap 7i) associated with .the bottom sheet 62 of the package.

The next step in the construction of the package is to seal one of the ends as indicated at 72 in FIG. 8. To effect this sealing operation, flap 70 is folded over so the uncoated surface of the flap is facing the uncoated surface of bottom sheet 62. With the flap in this position, the entire end of the package is heat sealed as indicated at 72 in FIG. 8, with no danger of sealing the flap to the top sheet 60. With one end sealed, the package is lled with ink and then the other end of the package is scaled as shown at 74 in the same manner as described in connection with end 72. At this stage of fabrication, the package appears as shown in FIG. 9.

A pair of lances 76 are also provided in the package of this alternate arrangement, one lance being provided at each end of the package in the area of the heat seals 72 and 74 as shown in FIG. 8, to permit easy removal of the tear strip 64. The lances in this form of package are preferably cut linwardly from the end of the package a distance short of the full width of the end seals. As shown in FIG. 12, the lances 76 are positioned parallel to the tear strip 64 and spaced slightly from the bottom edge thereof. While the exact locations of the lances are not critical, it is important that the lances do not cut through the flap 76 of the package. If the flap were cut, of course, once the package was opened and placed into a fountain of a duplicating machine, the ink would seep through the cut and contaminate the ink blade and other adjacent parts of the fountain.

In use, this last described ink package functions in the same manner as the earlier described packages, i.e., the package is opened by grasping one end of the tear strip 64 in the area of lance 76, and removing the tear strip by pulling it outwardly and toward the lance at the other end of the package. The removal of the tear strip, in effect, provides a second flap associated with t-op sheet 60. This second flap also serves to keep the fountain clean as explained in the earlier described arrangement. The opened package is subsequently placed into the ink fountain of a duplicating machine with the open end of the package toward the fountain roller. In this position the flaps form between them an elongate dispensing slit through which ink may be extruded for use and, at the same time, the flaps protect the parts of the fountain other than the fountain roller from coming into contact with the ink, thus considerably reducing the clean-up `operation of the fountain.

rfhe last described package is presently considered to 'be the preferred form -of the invention. The primary advantage of this form of package is the absence of a flap associated with the top sheet 60 in the area of the end seals 72 and 74, i.e., the elongate slit which results from the removal of the tear strip runs the full length of the package, however, the upper flap which is, in effect, formed upon opening of the package, is restricted in llength and terminates at the inner limits, designated 7S in FIG. 12, of the end seals 72 and 74. In this way, a dam or a barrier is provided by the inner limits 78 at the point Where tear strip 64 intersects seals 72 and 74 when the tear strip is removed. This barrier, of course, is provided at both ends yof the package and is effective to inhibit seepage of ink outwardly toward the ends when the package is in use.

Although the novel package of the present invention has been described as it might relate to the fabrication of a single unit at a time, as will be explained hereinbelow, the package assembly lends itself extremely well t-o auto- Vmatic mass production techniques including, of course,

filling the package with ink or the like. =In this regard,

referring to the package of FIGS. L1 to 5, the members 12,

14, 16 and 18 are heat sealed, in a continuous strip assembly, in the positions shown in FIG. 3. This -continuous strip is preferably wound onto a spool in roll form and,

subsequently, fed from the spool to the various stations of automatic packaging equipment which performs the following operations:

(a) Wrapping the strip around a longitudinally arranged mandrel into a tubular configuration.

(b) Heat sealing the adjacent margins of the shaped strip as at 30 to form a tube.

(c) Heat sealing the forward or lead end of the tube.

(d) Introducing a predetermined charge of ink into the tube.

(e) Expelling any air in the tube beyond the ink charge.

(f) Heating sealing the other or trailing end of the tube beyond the ink. (This occurs simultaneously with step (c) for a subsequent package.) (g) Cutting the package to length midway of the heat seal.

(h) Providing the lances for the tear strip (which may `occur simultaneously with step (g) While the foregoing operations may differ slightly for fabricating the alternate packages disclosed herein, it `is to be understood that the above outlined operations are intended to cover the general sequence required in the automatic processing of packages of this kind.

From the foregoing, it will be appreciated that the present invention provides an ink package that is clean to handle, as well as a package which minimizes ink contamination of the ink fountain thereby greatly reducing the time required to clean the fountain.

While the foregoing description has proceeded on the basis of a package for ink for use in the ink fountain of a printing or duplicating machine, it will be appreciated that the invention also has lapplication in other situations where it is desired to dispense a pasty material in a thin film of substantial width, and such applications are, of course, intended to be included.

The value of this invention may lbest be seen by an illustration of the manner in which the package overlays and protects a support surface, such as the wall of an ink fountain in a lithograph machine, and the manner in which the package maintains its contents completely sealed against the atmosphere at all times. In FIG. 13 a back w-all 100 which represents the usual adjustable blade in an ink fountain of a lithograph machine, is seen to be completely overlaid by the first sheet `wall 12, which may be termed the bottom wall 12 of the individual package. The support 100 begins at an edge 102 lying along the periphery of a roller 104 and projects in a direction approximating a tangential plane with respect to the roller 104.

In actual construction, the edge 102 is adjustable by means of longitudinally acting screws extending along the edge. This construction is well known to those familiar with lithograph duplicating machines. Therefore, edge 102 may actually be brought into scraping contact with the periphery of roller 10d, or spaced a short distance from contact. Preferably, for the use of this invention, the edge 102 is spaced until the flap 20 is positioned and then the edge 102 may be moved forward in the usual manner, the only difference being that the flap 20 will serve the function normally served by the edge 102, and therefore the edge 102 will be spaced a few thousands of an inch corresponding to the thickness of the flap 20. At the opposite side of the package, edge 30 extends over the top remote edge of the support surface and is clamped in a position to allow the flap 20 to extend beyond the edge 102 as illustrated in FIG. 13. No clamp device is shown, but the indentation 106 is shown in the portion 30 to suggest the presence of a clamp device.

The roller 104 rotates in the direction suggested by the arrow contained within the roller in FIG. 13, to Lmove the periphery of the roller in a direction passing the container and moving toward the surface edge 102. T-he top, or second wall L14, of the package, extends from the area 30 where it is joined to the wall 12, and holds the remnant half @6b of the original bridging Wall 16 which remains after the tear strip 13 has been removed. Wall 14 and the remnant 16h lie on the roller periphery with the edge of the slit formed by removal of the tear strip turned in the direction of roller'rotation.

The ink which is used for such duplication is a viscous pasty material, and will not normally ow with suicient certainty to assure the presence of ink against the roller surface. Accordingly, a curved squeezing device 108 is shown pressing in a rolling action from the area 30 toward the roller to work the contents forwardly toward the slit and against the surface of roller 104. No shade marks indicating fluid are shown in the drawing Within the walls in the FIGS. 13 through 17, because the important area is that area of the roller which bridges over the opening from the edge of the slit on portion 16b and the point of contact with the surface of flap 20. This area is exceedingly small in the drawings and shading to show fluid would confuse the illustration. Nevertheless, the action of the squeezing device 108 causes the wall 14 to bulge outwardly under the fluid pressure generated, but the rolling action of the roller 10a4 will drag the lip edge of the slit toward the flap 20, and thus causes a sealing mouth action of the package against the surface of the roller.

The FIG. 14 is similar in all respects to the FIG. 13, and shows the environmental position of the FIG. 7 package after the tear strip 34 has been removed. In this view, the flap 56 is seen to extend beyond the edge 102, and the remnant of Wall 42 is labeled as 42a, and is seen to be in contact with the surface of roller 104 and is overlaid by the flap 58.

In FIG. 15 the `more simplified structure of FIG. 9 is shown with the ap 70 in overextending position, and

the wall 60 after the tear strip 64 has been removed, serving as the sealing edge cooperating with the roller 104.

Because Mylar material requires a coating in order to heat seal, a further improvement in structure is shown in FIG. 16 wherein a strip of material 110 is coated with a surface 112 which permits heat sealing. By folding in the manner shown in FIG. 16, the area 114 may be readily sealed to form a top clamp edge. By looping in the area indicated by reference 116, the single sheet may be sealed to itself in the area without special coating attention to that particular edge.

The FIG. 16 construction is shown in an environmental relationship in the FIG. 17, wherein the remnant remaining after the tear strip has been removed is shown to overhang the seal area, but to neither serve a useful purpose nor interfere. In all other respects, the construction is identical to the FIGS. 9 and 15 illustrations.

Whereas the present invention has been shown and described herein in what is conceived to be the best mode contemplated, it is recognized that departures `may be made therefrom within the scope of the invention which is, therefore, not to be limited to the details disclosed herein, but is to be afforded the full scope of the invention as hereinafter claimed.

What is claimed is:

1. In an ink supply system for dispensing pasty ink to a duplicating machine, comprising:

a fountain roller;

a support surface means beginning at an edge lying along the periphery of said roller and projecting in a direction approximating a tangential plane Iwith respect to said fountain roller;

a container for said ink having rst and second sheet Walls defining opposite sides of an elongate, relative- 1y flexible envelope:

said container first wall overlaying said support surface means and extending between said support surface means beginning edge and said roller, said container first wall being pressed by said surface means edge against said roller;

said container second wall joined to said first wall a distance from said roller;

`a quantity of pasty ink positioned between said container walls;

said container walls joined along opposite sides,

and having a slit opening extending therebetween;

said roller rotatable in a direction to move the periphery thereof in a direction passing said container and toward said surface means edge;

said container second wall lying on the roller periphery and the edge of said slit Opening turned in the direction of roller rotation.

2. In the ink supply system defined in claim 1, the provision of means for progressively squeezing the container against said support means in the direction of said roller to move the pasty ink through said slit against said roller.

3. In an ink fountain and fountain roller combination of a duplicating machine, wherein said fountain has a support surface beginning at an edge lying along the periphery of the roller and extending to an edge remote from said roller, the provision of an ink supply package insertable and removable from the fountain and operative to supply ink to said roller without inking the fountain parts, comprising:

first and second sheet walls defining opposite sides of an elongate, relatively fiat flexible envelope, said walls joined together in a laterally extending top clamp border, said top border extendable to said remote edge of said fountain support and providing suspension support for said sheet Walls depending 10 therefrom, said first sheet wall dimensioned to extend from said border to a position beyond said support surface edge at the roller periphery and to lie between said edge and said roller;

a bridging wall extending between said first and second sheet walls at a distance from said top border;

said walls sealed along opposite sides in a direction transverse to said top border;

a dividing line and tear strip means for dividing said bridging wall into two parts, one part remaining associated with said first sheet wall and one part with said second sheet wall, and both resulting parts being extendable after division to a terminal edge a distance from said fountain remote edge but spaced from said fountain edge at the roller; and

said second sheet wall after division by said tear strip, lying on the roller periphery and the edge of the resulting slit opening turned in the direction of said support surface.

4. A package assembly for dispensing pasty ink to the fountain roller of a duplicating machine, comprising:

first and second sheet walls defining opposite sides of an elongate, relatively flat iiexible envelope, said walls joined together in a laterally extending top clamp edge, said top clamp edge providing suspension support for said sheet Walls depending therefrom;

a bridging wall extending between said first and second sheet, walls at a distance from said top clamp edge, said first sheet wall extending beyond said bridging wall to a terminal edge;

said wall sealed along opposite sides in a direction transverse to said top clamp edge; and

a dividing line along said bridging wall, said dividing line allotting said bridging wall into two parts, one part remaining associated with said rst sheet wall and one part with said second sheet wall, and both resulting parts being extendable after division to a terminal edge a distance less than the terminal edge of said first sheet wall.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,965,596 7/l934 Kline 101-366 2,069,334 2/ 1937 Salisberg. 2,139,040 12/ 1938 Salisberg. 3,001,689 9/1961 Burton 229-62 3,094,924 6/ 1963 Stark 206-56 3,181,583 5/ 1965 Lingenfelter 229-66 ROBERT E. PULFREY, Primary Examiner. J. R, FISHER, Assistant Examiner.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE CERTIFICATE OF CORRECTION Paten: No. 3,316,839 Dated May 2, 1967 Inventor(s) Francis K. Lake It is certified that error appears in the above-identified patent and that said Letters Patent are hereby corrected as shown below:

In Column l, directly following the bar after the Abstract, insert the following:

This application is a continuation-in-part of application Serial No. 381,975, now abandoned, filed July 13, 196k and entitled PACKAGE.

SIGNED Mw SEALED t AUG 25197() (SEAL) Attest:

muy r. n. Eawnamnadmlrcaminan or ma Anesngomr FORM P04050 (I0-69) USCQMNPDC 603764, a u s4 covnunzu-r manna omc: z un o-:u-:u 

1. IN AN INK SUPPLY SYSTEM FOR DISPENSING PASTY INK TO A DUPLICATING MACHINE, COMPRISING: A FOUNTAIN ROLLER; A SUPPORT SURFACE MEANS BEGINNING AT AN EDGE LYING ALONG THE PERIPHERY OF SAID ROLLER AND PROJECTING IN A DIRECTION APPROXIMATING A TANGENTIAL PLANE WITH RESPECT TO SAID FOUNTAIN ROLLER; A CONTAINER FOR SAID INK HAVING FIRST AND SECOND SHEET WALLS DEFINING OPPOSITE SIDES OF AN ELONGATE, RELATIVELY FLEXIBLE ENVELOPE: SAID CONTAINER FIRST WALL OVERLAYING SAID SUPPORT SURFACE MEANS AND EXTENDING BETWEEN SAID SUPPORT SURFACE MEANS BEGINNING EDGE AND SAID ROLLER, SAID CONTAINER FIRST WALL BEING PRESSED BY SAID SURFACE MEANS EDGE AGAINST SAID ROLLER; SAID CONTAINER SECOND WALL JOINED TO SAID FIRST WALL A DISTANCE FROM SAID ROLLER; A QUANTITY OF PASTY INK POSITIONED BETWEEN SAID CONTAINER WALLS; SAID CONTAINER WALLS JOINED ALONG OPPOSITE SIDES, AND HAVING A SLIT OPENING EXTENDING THEREBETWEEN; SAID ROLLER ROTATABLE IN A DIRECTION TO MOVE THE PERIPHERY THEREOF IN A DIRECTION PASSING SAID CONTAINER AND TOWARD SAID SURFACE MEANS EDGE; SAID CONTAINER SECOND WALL LYING ON THE ROLLER PERIPHERY AND THE EDGE OF SAID SLIT OPENING TURNED IN THE DIRECTION OF ROLLER ROTATION. 